Cambion
by Alley Cat Sunflower
Summary: One of three New Years' stories I'm doing for my three top pairings; this is first place! Dave can't figure out how to tell Rose how he feels about her. Just when he's certain he's going to fail, who should show up but the object of his desire? T for a lot of things. I don't own Homestuck or the art!


**((The first of my OTPs, written in honor of the new year! Takes place on the New Year's Eve/Day before their journey ends, as with the other two.))**

_Okay, Dave, don't fuck it up, don't fuck it up…_

"Can I just say how unbelievably fucking sexy you are?" he asked the mirror, then facepalmed and continued pacing around his bathroom. That wouldn't work. Then again, nothing would. Rose would be too reserved to accept that, unless she was completely hammered like she was for her little date with Kanaya, in which case maybe he had a chance, assuming she was bisexual and not strictly gay.

"…Do you want to go out with me? Maybe get some ink tea from all the benevolent godsquids surrounding the dream bubbles?" Maybe that was more her style. She did have kind of a thing for tentacles, which alarmed Dave as much as it fascinated him. Hopefully that did not extend to her bedtime rituals. Which, of course, he wouldn't be getting a part of anyway, if his terrible pickup lines were any clues.

Dave stared into the mirror despondently. Terezi had been the one to ask him out, not vice versa, so he had no experience with being rejected, and wasn't about to make his first advances failures. He was sure he was irresistible despite his idiotic opening lines, so that actually wasn't a huge issue. The problem was Rose's sexuality. He honestly wasn't sure whether she even swung his way even a little, and he wasn't going to embarrass himself by courting a lesbian.

Oh, and the fact that she was his ectobiological sibling, but Dave wasn't as concerned about that.

He was certain Rose knew about his attraction. The only reason it was possible for him to conceal as many of his emotions as he did was because of his shades, and those didn't stop him from blushing whenever an inopportune thought crossed his mind when she was in the vicinity. Not to mention, the girl had a habit of flustering him—winking at unexpected times, for instance—and was unabashedly flirtatious towards him even though she knew he was technically related to her. It was those signs that both kept him going and set him back. It made Dave think that maybe she was just screwing with him and she was just teasing him.

"Nice boxers, Knight," said Rose's voice, and Dave jumped about a foot in the air as she appeared in the doorway behind him, according to his trusty mirror, the witness to all his imaginary failures and about to add a real one to the list.

"U-uh," said Dave, determined not to look at her reflection in the mirror. From what his peripheral vision could glean, she was wearing a black-and-purple bikini, and her hair was wet.

"Terezi has refused to get in the hot tub until you arrive."

Dave avoided eye contact instinctively, even though he knew she couldn't see through his sunglasses, and begged his body not to reveal its lust. "A-and this is a reason to barge into my roomwhy, exactly?" He congratulated himself on stuttering only once—something he never thought would be a cause for celebration.

"She's started complaining about the cold, and refuses to shut up or get in until you come. If you don't get your little heart-print ass to the hot tub, a different Knight will rescue her first." She frowned when Dave didn't respond. "Is this not a cause for alarm, or…?"

"I, uh," managed Dave, then stopped. He could hear his bro chiding him mentally, urging him to keep up the fight. _Striders never admit defeat. Come on, bro. If she rejects you, she ain't worth shit. _

"So, Lalonde," sighed Dave, surprised at the well of confidence he found he had tapped deep within himself, "do you come here often, or are you just passing through this once?"

"This is _your _room, Strider, not mine." Rose raised an eyebrow.

"I locked the door."

"I picked the lock."

"You could have shouted through the door."

"Like you would listen to me."

"I'd listen to _you _talk about anything."

"Except the history of Sburb, evidently." Rose's tone was still cool, almost chilly, but there was an amused glint in her eyes Dave was insistent upon furthering. _Say something witty, stupid._

"I did my best to stay awake!"

"Your best is pretty poor, then."

"That's not what you'll say after I'm finished with you." The words tumbled from Dave's mouth and his eyes widened invisibly in horror. He had done it. He had crossed the line. His heartbeat increased drastically as Rose regarded him with blank shock.

"You—" she sputtered. "You—" she tried again, and cut herself off. "That wasn't even ironic," she finished. "That was genuine." She continued to stare at him, thinking hard, and Dave took a moment before his inevitable death at her hands to admire her beautiful lavender eyes. _It's totally worth it._

A smile played on Rose's lips, dark purple from her Horrorterror® lipstick, or whatever the hell it was she used, and she caressed his chin. "Why, dear Strider, could it be that you have developed… _feelings _for me?"

Dave's eyes widened again, this time in mingled horror and surprise. "Uh-h-h," he began, tremblingly, falling upon his knees mentally to plead with his body again. _Think of dead Daves. All the dead Daves. All of them!_

Rose moved her face close to his—too close—and took off his sunglasses, leaning against him in a way both so comfortable he wished he could stay there forever and so uncomfortable he couldn't stand her presence in the same room with him for an eternity.

"What-the-fuck-are-you-doing-Rose," said Dave, panting with the effort of keeping himself under control. "Stop-that-right-now—"

"If you insist," shrugged Rose, "in a moment." Suddenly, Dave knew what was going to happen, and couldn't tell whether he should be euphoric or furious about it; she kissed him briefly, almost experimentally. Dave couldn't help but reciprocate, hungrily, trying his best to resist doing anything more than that.

"I thought so," said Rose with satisfaction, breaking away and twirling his sunglasses between her fingers, and wandering out the door a moment later. "Get yourself under control, get dressed to swim, and go comfort your whining girlfriend."

Dave glared at her retreating figure. "Why?"

Rose understood that it was not a question pertaining to what she had just said. "Because, Strider dear," she murmured, without turning around, "you must first muster up the courage to tell me yourself. Then, we'll see…"

**((I began this without a clue as to where it was going… Tell me what you think!))**


End file.
